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It's part of a broader measure that would enforce new sanctions against Russia and strengthen existing ones. Video provided by Newsy Newslook

Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee(Photo: AP Photo, Mark Humphrey)

WASHINGTON The Senate voted overwhelmingly Thursday to place new sanctions on Iran and Russia, setting up a possible confrontation with the Trump administration as it attempts to improve relations with Moscow.

Republican and Democratic senatorssaid the sanctions, approved by a vote of 98-2,are needed to punish Iran for its recent flurry of ballistic missile tests and human rights abuses and to show Russia that its interference in last years presidential election and its aggression in Syria will not be tolerated. Voting no were Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.

It truly is astounding what Iran continues to do around the world, said Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, the Republican chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. For a people that are capable of so much, their foreign policy is shockingly counter to their own interest.

We see destabilizing act after destabilizing act from missile launches, to arms transfers, to terrorist training, to illicit financial activities, to targeting Navy ships and detaining American citizens the list goes on and on.

And its past time for us to take steps to protect the interests of the United States and our allies.

Regarding Russia, Corker said the sanctions send a strong message to Russian President Vladimir Putin while ensuring the Trump administration has the flexibility it needs for its ongoing talks with the Kremlin.

The White House has not said whether President Trump would veto the legislation but has sent signals that it opposes the bill partly because the measure prohibits Trump from unilaterally suspending or terminating the sanctions. Under the legislation, Congress would have the authority to review and potentially disapprove any attempt by Trump to lift the sanctions.

After Thursday's vote, the White House said it is still reviewing the new Russian sanctions legislation.

The new Iran sanctions also have raised concerns among top officials who served in former president Barack Obamas administration. Theyfearthe sanctionscould jeopardize the landmark nuclear deal struck with Tehran in 2015.

Corker, however, said Irans rogue behavior has escalated since the agreement was implemented and that the sanctions would give the Trump administration tools for holding Tehran accountable.

Read more:

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Bob Corker, other senators back new sanctions on Iran

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The bill, which awaits an uncertain future in the House, imposes mandatory sanctions on people involved with Irans ballistic missile program and those who do business with them. It also applies terrorism sanctions to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and enforces an arms embargo.

The Russian provisions, which resulted from bipartisan talks involving several committees, strengthen existing sanctions against key sectors of Russias economy and impose new sanctions on those engaged in cyber activity on behalf of the Russian government.

The legislation also puts in place new sanctions against Russia over human rights abuses and against those who suppliedweapons to the regime of Syrian president Bashar Hafez al-Assad.

Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., said the sanctions strengthen the U.S.s hand against Putin, whose campaign to influence the U.S. election struck at the very core of our democracy and simply must not be permitted.

U.S. intelligence officials have warned that Putin and his accomplices will continue to meddle in future elections in the United States and Europe, Nelson said.

Beware, Nelson warned. Theyve laid the groundwork for next years (congressional) elections to try to interfere.

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Senate votes to punish Russia and Iran over election interference, aggression - USA TODAY

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, June 13, 2017, before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. CREDIT: AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

The new U.S. policy towards Iran includes regime change, according to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

Tillerson was asked on Wednesday whether the United States supports regime change inside Iran. He replied in the affirmative, saying that U.S. policy is driven by relying on elements inside of Iran to bring about peaceful transition of that government.

He made the comments in a hearing on the 2018 State Department budget before the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX) asked Tillerson about U.S. policy towards Iran, including whether the U.S. government would sanction the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and whether the U.S. supported a philosophy of regime change.

They are doing bad things throughout the world, on behalf of terrorism and destroying human rights of many people, Poe said, referring to the IRGC. Id like to know what the policy is of the U.S. toward Iran. Do we support the current regime? Do we support a philosophy of regime change, peaceful regime change? There are Iranians in exile all over the world. Some are here. And then theres Iranians in Iran who dont support the totalitarian state. So is the U.S. position to leave things as they are or set up a peaceful long-term regime change?

Well our Iranian policy is under development, Tillerson replied. Its not yet been delivered to the president, but I would tell you that we certainly recognize Irans continued destabilizing presence in the region, their payment of foreign fighters, their export of militia forces in Syria, in Iraq, in Yemen, their support for Hezbollah. And we are taking action to respond to Irans hegemony. Additional sanctions actions have been put in place against individuals and others.

We continually review the merits both from the standpoint of diplomatic but also international consequences of designating the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in its entirety as a terrorist organization, he added. As you know, we have designated the Quds [Force]. Our policy towards Iran is to push back on this hegemony, contain their ability to develop obviously nuclear weapons, and to work toward support of those elements inside of Iran that would lead to a peaceful transition of that government. Those elements are there, certainly as we know.

Trumps foreign policy team is filled with hawks on Iran, but Tillerson is the first administration official to advocate for regime change in his official capacity.

The Iranian government was quick to condemn Tillersons remarks. On Thursday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi called Tillersons comments interventionist, in gross violation of the compelling rules of international law, unacceptable and strongly condemned.

Since the 1950s, the United States tried to meddle in Iranian affairs by different strategies such as coup dtat, regime change, and military intervention. Qassemi said, referring to U.S. involvement in the 1953 coup in Iran, dubbed Operation AJAX by the CIA. These efforts have all failed, Qassemi said, adding that the new U.S. government was confused and could be easily manipulated by wrong information.

Tillersons focus on nuclear weapons in his comments on Wednesday are notable, given that he has previously acknowledged that Iran is in full compliance with the Iranian nuclear agreement (as has the International Atomic Energy Agency).

Last week, Iran suffered an attack claimed by the Islamic State that killed at least 17 people and injured dozens. The White House response implied that Iran deserved the attack. We grieve and pray for the innocent victims of the terrorist attacks in Iran, and for the Iranian people, who are going through such challenging times, the statement read. We underscore that states that sponsor terrorism risk falling victim to the evil they promote.

The next day, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), a vocal Trump supporter, praised the attack in Tehran and suggested that the United States should work with the Islamic State to counter Iran.

On Thursday, the Senate passed an Iran sanctions bill, despite former Secretary of State John Kerrys warning that new sanctions could threaten the Iranian nuclear agreement.

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Tillerson calls for regime change in Iran - ThinkProgress

New York Times

Finding Bravado, and Worry, at an Iranian Shrine Where ISIS Struck New York Times I would sit on the thick red carpets with visitors from across Iran and beyond, talking with them about the war in Syria, the latest soap operas and coming elections. Sometimes officials would ask me who I was, only to offer tea and let me be. Despite ... Iran: Island of peace in ocean of troubles?Anadolu Agency Attacks in Iran show Tehran's chickens coming home to roostThe Hill (blog) Iran accuses Saudis of supporting terrorist groupsAljazeera.com Al-Monitor -Reuters -Press TV -Farsnews all 190 news articles »

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Finding Bravado, and Worry, at an Iranian Shrine Where ISIS Struck - New York Times

Congress is seeking new authorities that would enable it to expose and crack down on an Iranian state-controlled commercial airline known for transporting weapons and terrorist fighters to hotspots such as Syria, where Iranian-backed forces have begun launching direct attacks on U.S. forces in the country, according to new legislation obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.

Congressional efforts to expose Iran's illicit terror networks more forcefully come as U.S. and European air carriers such as Boeing and AirBus move forward with multi-billion dollar deals to provide the Islamic Republic with a fleet of new airplanes, which lawmakers suspect Iran will use to amplify its terror operations.

The new sanction legislation targets Iran's Mahan Airlines, which operates commercial flights across the globe while transporting militants and weapons to fighters in Syria, Yemen, and other regional hotspots.

Click for more from The Washington Free Beacon.

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Congress seeks embargo on Iran airline linked to terrorism as Tehran targets US forces - Fox News

Last week ISIS staged an unprecedented terrorist attack in the heart of Iran. At least 17 people were killed and dozens more were injured at two symbolic locations of the Islamic Republic: the parliament and the mausoleum of Ayatollah Khomeini.

The reaction from Irans clerical rulers was predictable; they variously blamed their regional and international enemies the USA, Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Ignored by Iranian officials and by most expert commentators, however, was any recognition that Tehrans domestic and regional policies were contributing factors. In other words, the expansion of ISIS into Iran was a classic case of Iranian regime blowback.

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The conventional wisdom suggests that Iran would remain immune to ISIS as a global terrorist threat. Given Irans majority Shia population and the fact that ISIS is a deeply anti-Shia cult informed by an extremist Sunni neo-Wahhabism, it has been widely assumed that Iranian recruits to ISIS would be difficult to find.

A gunman is seen entering Iranian parliament building in a still image taken from close circuit television (CCTV), taken on June 7, 2017, in Tehran, Iran. IRIB/Handout via Reuters

We now know that Iranian Kurds were behind the ISIS attack in Tehran. The reasons are broadly similar to what we have learned about the politics and psychology of Islamic radicalization. Marginalized, angry and alienated populations exposed to salafi ideology are susceptible to ISIS recruitment.

Approximately eight percent of Irans population is Sunni, mainly representing Arab, Baluchi, Turkmen and Kurdish minorities. They live on Irans periphery and suffer disproportionately from unemployment and discrimination.

Credible reporting suggests that a small number from these groups have joined ISIS due to the same socio-economic push and pull factors that drives ISIS recruitment worldwide. According to the distinguished Iranian journalist Mashallah Shamsolvaezin, the border towns and villages and tribes along Irans east, west and southern borders are poor and vulnerable to extremism.

This has produced social conditions where young unemployed men can be wooed and recruited. In other words, Iran now has a homegrown terrorist problem of its own. Its regional foreign policy has also been a contributing factor.

ISIS has a genocidal view toward Shia Muslims. Partly because of this, Iran and its proxies are fighting ISIS on various battlefields across the Middle East. At the same time, Irans sectarian foreign policy has indirectly contributed to the rise ISIS.

In Iraq, Tehrans critical support for Shia majoritarianism significantly contributed to Sunni marginalization, indirectly amplifying the ideological appeal of ISIS. Then there is Syria.

When the Arab Spring protests reached Syria in 2011, ISIS didnt exist. Peaceful protesters chanting non-sectarian slogans were confronting the 41-year rule of the House of Assad. From the outset, they were met with state-sanctioned repression that rapidly extended to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Gradually, the uprising militarized and then radicalized as regional actors entered the fray. The subsequent melee is responsible for the worst refugee crisis of the 21 st century and for killing nearly half a million people.

The Assad regime backed by Iran (and Russia) bears the lions share of responsibility for this state of affairs. It is from the killing fields of Syria that the ISIS variant of salafi-jihadism arose and expanded.

Today, Iran justifies it support for Assad by claiming it is fighting ISIS and Al Qaeda. In doing so, however, it conveniently reads the Syrian conflict backward instead of forward.

From the inception of the conflict, and prior to the rise of salafi-jihadism in Syria, Iran strongly backed the Assad regime. Its early intervention had nothing to do with combating religious extremism for the simple reason that this problem barely existed in the early months of the Syrian uprising.

In the past six years, this changed and Iran stepped up its intervention. Mostly notably, it recruited a pan-Shia militia that, along with Hezbollah, has done the bulk of the fighting in defense of the Assad regime.

Irans critical role in Syria has significantly contributed to the spread of sectarianism across the Middle East: ISIS has been a key beneficiary of this. Now the blowback has come to Tehran.

ISIS is fundamentally the product of political authoritarianism in the Sunni Arab world. Its theological home is in Saudi Arabia. The legacy of political tyranny in the Arab world, buttressed by the consequences of the US invasion of Iraq, created social conditions that allowed this extremist cult not only to emerge but also to proliferate. Irans role in this equation has been generally unrecognized.

Though indirect, Irans contribution has been significant. Its domestic policies discriminating against ethnic/religious minorities, and its sectarian foreign policy in Iraq and Syria are key elements that has contributed to ISIS expansion. In other words, Irans chickens have come home to roost.

Nader Hashemiis the Director of the Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Denver. His latest book isSectarianization: Mapping the New Politics of the Middle East.

Originally posted here:
Surely Some Mistake. Why Did ISIS Attack Iran? - Newsweek